Beckett: Lieben 2026 - Six Paintings
7:30pm - 9:40pm /
Sunday 20th September 2026
/ Venue: Tung Auditorium
- 0151 794 1500
- Alex Baber-Norris
- Admission: FREE, booking required
- Event website
- Book now
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In the late 1920s, the young Samuel Beckett travelled to Kassel in Germany to visit his aunt Cissie. There, he fell tragically in love with his first cousin Peggy and, through her art dealer father William ‘Boss' Sinclair, came face to face with German expressionism which will prove a profound influence on his work.
The Six Paintings concert explores the interplay between visual art and music, developed by Unreal Cities in consultation with Professor Mark Nixon, the director of the Beckett International Foundation and the editor of Beckett’s German diaries, to be published for the first time in 2026.
The programme brings together six of the world’s leading musicians to respond to six paintings that each play a role in this complex story, alongside Samuel Beckett’s impressions and writings narrated by Anna Nygh. Featuring Iarla Ó Lionáird (voice and electronics), Michelle O'Rourke (voice), Cheng Yu (guqin), Niwel Tsumbu and Benjamin Dwyer (guitars), and Mary Dullea (piano), the performance explores Beckett’s work through a rich blend of voices and instruments.
(Image above: Leyhausen, Karl - Peggy Sinclair, 1931 (cropped))
Presented by Unreal Cities in association with the Institute of Irish Studies, University of Liverpool as part of the Beckett: Lieben 2026 festival
The Six Paintings concert explores the interplay between visual art and music, developed by Unreal Cities in consultation with Professor Mark Nixon, the director of the Beckett International Foundation and the editor of Beckett’s German diaries, to be published for the first time in 2026.
The programme brings together six of the world’s leading musicians to respond to six paintings that each play a role in this complex story, alongside Samuel Beckett’s impressions and writings narrated by Anna Nygh. Featuring Iarla Ó Lionáird (voice and electronics), Michelle O'Rourke (voice), Cheng Yu (guqin), Niwel Tsumbu and Benjamin Dwyer (guitars), and Mary Dullea (piano), the performance explores Beckett’s work through a rich blend of voices and instruments.
(Image above: Leyhausen, Karl - Peggy Sinclair, 1931 (cropped))
Presented by Unreal Cities in association with the Institute of Irish Studies, University of Liverpool as part of the Beckett: Lieben 2026 festival